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MERS News Alert eBlast

 

The Protecting Local Government Retirement and Benefits Act, Public Acts 202-214 of 2017 was signed into law earlier this week. These reforms are recommendations of Gov. Snyder's Responsible Retirement Reform for Local Government Task Force, which was convened earlier this year to address concerns surrounding the unfunded pension and retiree health care liabilities of local governments in Michigan.

 

Joined by a group of lawmakers, task force members and other stakeholders, Gov. Snyder signed the Protecting Local Government Retirement Benefits Act.
 

The act incorporates four phases for local units to use in addressing their fiscal health and the security of retirement benefits for retired municipal employees:

  1. Transparency through reporting requirements
  2. Identification of potential problems
  3. Review for fiscal distress
  4. Develop a corrective action plan

"This legislation is an important step forward in addressing one of Michigan's remaining unfunded liability challenges," Snyder said. "I appreciate the task force's hard work in developing a framework that will help move more communities toward greater financial stability. I also look forward to a continued cooperative effort as future work occurs on this important issue."

We anticipate that the Department of Treasury will issue guidance as it relates to the process soon. Once this information becomes available we will communicate with you through email and on our website and do our best to assist you with the new reporting requirements.

To actively follow municipal retirement reform, please see our dedicated webpage and sign up for alerts.